


One More Minute

by Dairypie



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Angst, F/M, Sad, Tears, Unrequited Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-21
Updated: 2017-06-21
Packaged: 2018-11-17 02:49:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 932
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11266374
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dairypie/pseuds/Dairypie
Summary: KillerVibe Week- Day 3: The moment you started shipping themBased off of 1x09 when they are hugging in the pipeline, but from Cisco's perspectiveHe couldn’t imagine then what kind of pain she was going through, losing her fiancé, and he can’t imagine what finding a shell of him feels like.





	One More Minute

**Author's Note:**

> The moment I knew I was caught forever by KillerVibe, was this scene right here. Because for me, it's about the love just coming from Cisco. It just pours off of him in waves and re watching the scene always gives me the chills. He has this look in the eyes of just hoping and wishing that he could be good enough for her to get to stop crying. It for me seems to be the moment he realizes that he loves her, that's how I have always really read that scene. That he would give everything away to give her one minute of happiness and it breaks my heart, especially knowing how that just continues into the other seasons. This one, really hurt to write. I was in tears by the end, but for me, it helped me to really look at why I ship them so much. It's because of their friendship and that if they didn't get together and kept this insane friendship forever, I would be okay with that, because Cisco would do that for her if she asked.

Cisco can’t begin to imagine what she’s going through, as he sits beside her in the pipeline. Caitlin had been here alone for a while now. He can tell she’s been crying and trying to hide it when he approaches. They sit in silence for a long time. They had done this many times since the explosion. He would just sit with her until she was ready to talk about it. He couldn’t imagine then what kind of pain she was going through, losing her fiancé, and he can’t imagine what finding a shell of him feels like. He has an idea though, from how she shut down once they came back to the labs. He knows better than to push her to open up to him. She will when she’s ready.

He keeps a bit of space between them, from how she is sitting with her legs curled up under her, he can tell that’s what she needs right now. Cisco would consider himself a terrible friend if he didn’t recognize all the little signs. It had taken time to even get her to trust him enough to cry in front of him. He wasn’t going to throw all that work away. He let the silence go for a long time, but she’s been alone long enough.

“Caitlin” he begins softly. She doesn’t look up. “Don’t worry.” Cisco offers, still no response from her. He breaks the distance between them, resting a light hand on her arm. “Hey” She finally looks over at him. “Now that we know he’s out there, we will find Ronnie again.”

That seems to just make her mad. She shakes her head, her jaw tightens. “Why? So we can throw him in there with all the other metahuman psychos?” she half snaps at him, but there are tears finally her voice. Like Caitlin has already thought through the options and nothing Cisco will try to say to comfort her will work.

Cisco frowns, rubbing his hand over her arm still. He lets the silence fill the pipeline again. He can see the tears starting to well behind her eyes again. He doesn’t shift closer though. Caitlin is still too tense for that.

“I used to play this game in my head” she begins finally. “What would I give up for just one more minute with him?” Her voice is tight from trying to hold back tears, and Cisco just attentively listens to her. She tries to sniff back tears and keep them at bay, but a few trickle down her cheeks.

Cisco wants to wipe them away, but just keeps his hand on her arm.

She smiles ever so slightly. “My house, my career” she pauses and looks to him. “The rest of my life?”

Cisco has no response to that, beyond his heart dropping into the pit of his stomach. He can’t imagine a minute without Caitlin; she’s become an integral part of his everyday life. She’s his best friend. But he also understands that want to give something up to get the one thing you lost back.

“Today, I finally got that minute.” She says in a broken whisper the tears are falling quicker now. Caitlin shakes her head, looking down at her hands. “And I wish I hadn’t.” She swallows hard, her eyes closed tightly, her hands becoming fists in her lap. “Seeing him like that, what he’s become…”Her voice trails off overwhelmed with emotion. “Dear god…I…I just wish he had died that die.”

That’s when her composure broke and she let out a soft sob, her whole body collapsing in on itself as if trying to protect herself from the pain. Her hands coming up to cover her face.

Cisco takes that as his cue to final move in. He slides over and pulls her into an embrace. She comes easily, sobbing into his chest. He holds her tightly, his arm around her shoulders. His other hands coming up to stroke her face and move her hair back. He holds her there for a long time. He rests his cheek on the top of her head.

The only sound is her soft sobs filling the pipeline. Cisco blinks away his own tears, knowing this moment is about comforting her. So he stays strong for her, just holding her as long as she needs him too. Whether that’s for hours or just a few more minutes.

He doesn’t like to see her cry, she cried so much in the beginning. It breaks him to see her so distraught. Cisco had thought finally she had made peace, but now, it was like the process had to start over again. Maybe they could save Ronnie, maybe that would make her happy.

It’s in that moment, holding her close to his chest, her clutching him back. Cisco realizes something about himself. He’s in love with her.  Her words speak to him on so many levels. He knows that he would give up his apartment, his job and his own life, just so she could be happy again with Ronnie.

For months, Cisco kept telling him that’s just what best friends do. But it wouldn’t hurt so much to realize that she will never feel for him the same way he feels for her. So he’ll find Ronnie and help them reunite.

A few tears finally roll down his own cheeks into her hair. If she asks, he’ll just say it’s because he misses Ronnie too. Not because of his broken heart. And he’ll still be her best friend, because that’s what she needs.


End file.
